Chicago, IL Reviews

Great history, devastating present, live elsewhere - 11/27/2020
Place is a train wreck which is too bad as it has good architecture, interesting history and good airports. If you are interested in personal safety responsible government and retention of Realestate value look elsewhere. Property taxes amount to 10% of your income in addition to a high sales tax and 5% income tax: all in 20-25% of your gross income. Politics could be more screwed up but they would have to plan it out. One party rule for 60 years has resulted in a $35B city deficit and $110B state deficit. Detroit went under at $18B. 3/4 of the city is a poverty wasteland with a school system/Union failing the Black population: 50% of black males not meeting state standards for graduation. Many parts of the city are food deserts with failing infrastructure so people who can, are leaving at a remarkable rate. Mayor is happy to let the downtown burn while sending police to her house to protect her family. She is happy to quarantine the city but go get her hair done. Happy to pass a mask Read More

Chicago is a World-Class Alpha City. - 5/25/2020
Chicago is a world class Alpha city. People from all over the world make it their home and can find everything their own country has right at their fingertips. Politics and crime exist everywhere. People worldwide need lessons in safety and how to keep a low profile even in a bedroom community. Through hard work and networking, opportunities exist for anyone and everyone. If you can make it in Chicago, you can live any where on the planet. If you know the city like the back of your hand even traffic isn't a big deal. There are multiple ways to get around, and Chicagoans are never deterred or (detoured) when unexpected problems arise. Education is highly regarded, and multiple avenues to afford one. You won't find a bigger pool of talented health professionals and lawyers. Chicago police get a bad rap for a handful of bad apples. If you're respectful and compliant, most often you won't even be cited. The lakefront, forest preserves, parks, biking and running trails are like no other Read More

Considering a move to Chicago? Read this.... - 5/14/2020
We moved here from Colorado back in 2013 and want to move out ASAP. This is definitely not the place to live and raise a family. I have five facts that must be considered before moving to the Chicago area. 1. You must accept that if you plan on buying a house (i.e. avg $250000 - $300000) you will pay approx $7000 - $10000 in property taxes minimum (I say minimum because there are homeowners here (that have a house around that value) who pay more). 2. You must accept you will pay the highest sales taxes in the nation (i.e. sales tax is up to 11% in most areas). 3. Our not so wonderful governor just passed the highest gasoline tax in the nation and how it is .38c per gallon (i.e. it is a progressive tax so each year it will raise). 4. Our not so wonderful governor just passed the highest auto registration fees in the nation (i.e. $151 per passenger vehicle). 5. Chicago politics run the state.

Chicago is great if you do not mind the five facts I explained. Granted, there Read More

Nice Place To Visit But Not To Live - 4/19/2020
Nice city to visit but you really don't want to live there. I did for many years and it has lots of problem and is a very stressful place to live. First of all, it cost like hell to live there. If you aren't making lots of money by either being a professional or having a union gig, the rent or mortgage there will eat up most of what you make. Real estate taxes are likely the highest in the nation. If you want to own a car there, your insurance cost will be SKY high too. Even for liability. The roads there are in horrible shape and potholes damage cars all the time- especially small ones like a Corolla. And there is no place to park in most neighbourhoods on the street so you'll have to rent a private space for more than a little money. Oh, and you have to pay the city for a "city sticker" too. If you don't have a car, the CTA provides decent bus and subway service 24/7. For the most part, it is quality service and safe though I wouldn't advise riding it anywhere south of 35th street Read More

not as bad as you think - 10/29/2019
I lived in the city my whole life I loved Read More

Horrible - 9/5/2019
Lived there for 40 years, worse place in the nation. The weather is nice about 3% of the time, terrible roads, angry people, expediently growing corruption, and taxes taxes taxes!!! Second highest in the country in fact. Don’t like a certain tax, don’t worry they’ll double it to solve another problem.
And don’t get me started on the crime!
Swirling down the toilet, no wonder 150,000 people have left over the past 5 years. Glad I was part of that for sure! Read More

A Living Hell - 6/5/2019
I grew up here, and have lived many places in the city & suburbs. I've also lived in other states, so I know what life is like elsewhere.

As of 6/2019, this is the worst I've ever seen it here. I'm going to leave my elderly parents alone (bad!) because I hardly leave the house at night (I currently reside downtown, in a heavily touristy area).. and I've traveled all over the world, sometimes by myself.

The crime has been unthinkable (recently a mother and daughter murdered a pregnant woman and cut out her baby, for ex.), atrocious, violent (they shoot people at funerals, hospitals, around schools.. babies, kids, grandparents, innocents, does not matter), filled with hate (they don't only rob people, they beat them up first unnecessarily), and non-stop. (This past weekend only, 52 shootings, 10 people dead). See: cwbchicago.com (newspaper), or heyjackass.com (yes, that's the name, it's crime statistics), or Chicago Tribune. Right now - one person is shot Read More

Best City Ever - 4/24/2019
— Read More

My kind of Town - 4/13/2019
I have lived in this city for 15 years, and I love it.
However you have to be a certain type of person to love it here. To be successful here, these are some of the things that are important and you should decide if it's right for you.

You get all 4 seasons here, in equal amounts. Living on the lake is cooler in the summer and warmer/less snowy in the winter. Once you figure out how to dress properly, winter is no big deal. If you live within about 3 blocks from the lake, summer isn't hot and miserable, and you rarely get snow more than a few inches. If you want a lot of snow, you would need to move to the NW suburbs. If you need great shopping, amazing and diverse food and an abundance of things to do, this is a wonderful city.

The transportation is amazing. I haven't owned a car in 5 years, and certainly don't miss it. Read More

Think twice if you didn’t grow up here - 1/26/2019
I grew up in the near west suburbs of Chicago and moved back 5 years ago in my 50s to be near family. I have lived all over the country, including NY and CA. I now take the metra train downtown every day to work. If you didn’t grow up in a big, old city you really should think twice about moving here. This city has a lot of quirks and even picking a place to live is a complex affair. The city is very heavily segregated by race and right in the middle of far reaching gentrification, especially west and south of downtown. This means that neighborhoods are changing quickly. The commute is bad and the weather can be brutal. On the plus side, there is no place in the US with the combination of cultural and music events that you can actually get to and afford. Chicago basically has all of the great things about a big old city and all of the bad things too. It will take considerable learning to take advantage of the good while avoiding the Read More